Canadian Football League

Saturday, April 30, 2005

Is it going to be The Canadian Football League or The Giants for Flutie

Doug Flutie is old enough to be Eli Manning's father, but the Giants are strongly considering Flutie as Manning's backup.The 42-year-old veteran of 11 NFL seasons, eight CFL seasons and one USFL season visited Giants Stadium yesterday for a physical and could sign to replace Jim Miller, who signed as a free agent March 9.

The stunning development is believed to reflect the Giants' concern about Miller's health. Miller, 34, has had shoulder problems in the recent past. He was the Patriots' No. 3 quarterback last season and did not throw a pass.Miller was not present yesterday when Manning, 24, Jesse Palmer and Jared Lorenzen threw to Jeremy Shockey and others at the stadium. Cutting Miller would have minimal salary-cap impact; he got only a $25,000 bonus for signing. The Giants lauded Miller as a perfect backup because he had no designs on the starting job.Unlike Manning's father, .Archie, who fell short of winning a Heisman Trophy, Flutie won one at Boston College in 1984. Giants coach Tom Coughlin was Flutie's quarterbacks coach at BC from 1981-83.Flutie has played for the New Jersey Generals of the USFL, the Bears, Patriots, Bills and Chargers of the NFL and the CFL's British Columbia Lions, Calgary Stampeders and Toronto Argonauts.Last season, Flutie played two games for the Chargers, completing 20 of 38 passes for 276 yards and a TD. San Diego cut him March 11, and he was considering a career in broadcasting and an offer to play for the CFL's Hamilton Tiger-Cats with his brother Darren, a wide receiver.If the Giants were to sign Flutie, Palmer presumably would .compete with him for the .primary backup job.

Wednesday, April 27, 2005

Eskimos sign two more for Canadian Football League training camp

The Edmonton Eskimos announced the signing of defensive back Gerald Dixon and running back Elvis Joesph.Dixon signed as a free agent with the Detroit Lions in 2003 and was released prior to the regular season. After a brief stint with the Scottish Claymores of NFL Europe, Dixon was signed by the Buffalo Bills in June of 2004 and was released in August. Dixon was a 3-year starter at Alabama posting 52 tackles and two interceptions in his final season (2002).Joseph was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Jacksonville Jaguars in April 2001. He appeared in 29 games over two seasons and racked-up 294 yards on 68 career carries and added two touchdowns. Joseph also hauled in 18 passes for 183 yards. He was released by the Jags in August 2003. Prior to joining Jacksonville, Joseph attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette and also spent a year at Southern University

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Canadian Football League Quarter-Back working hard

Former Boise State star quarterback Bart Hendricks is making good use of his time and available facilities here in Boise before he leaves for training camp with the Edmonton Eskimos in late May. This will be Hendricks’ third season in the Canadian Football League with the Eskimos.Hendricks moved to Boise recently, and he spends the off-season here training at the Bronco facilities. “I like it here,” Hendricks said. “It’s also nice to have access to the facilities here as I am getting ready for the season.”Hendricks’ career at BSU was one of the most successful careers in school history. He finished his career as a Bronco with 9,030 yards in his four years, along with 78 touchdowns with only 34 interceptions. In his senior season, 2000, Hendricks led the Broncos to a second straight Humanitarian Bowl victory and was selected as the Big West Offensive Player of the Year for a second time, while completing just over 60 percent of his passes and racking up 3,633 yards through the air with 35 touchdowns with just eight picks. His yards mark stands at the top of the record books for most passing yards in a single season.After one of the best seasons in school history, Hendricks signed with the San Diego Chargers as an un-drafted free agent. He was sent to play for the Scottish Claymores in NFL Europe. As soon as he got there, he was traded to the Frankfurt Galaxy and practiced with them for about a week before he was sent back to the Claymores for training camp. After camp, Hendricks found himself heading back to Frankfort for the season. He spent only one year in NFL Europe. He led the Galaxy to a 4-0 start, and ended up needing to win just one of last two games to get a shot at playing for the championship. However, the team lost both games and finished 6-4. The team that won it all started out the season 0-4.The following year, Hendricks left NFL Europe for the CFL, where he signed with the Edmonton Eskimos. Hendricks is playing a back-up role to starting quarterback Jason Hass, who threw for over 5,000 yards in one season recently. The Eskimos went 9-9 last season after the team won it all the year prior. Head coach Tom Higgins, 2003 CFL Coach of the Year, resigned after last season. Hendricks will be reporting for camp at the end of May under new head coach Danny Maciocia. The Eskimos’ season starts June 10 against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.The Eskimos season usually ends around Thanksgiving, so Hendricks has had a chance to watch his alma mater’s success in the past few years, and he has high hopes for this year’s team. “What they did last year was incredible,” Hendricks said. “To go undefeated in an entire season, you’ve got to have some breaks as well as a good team. They got both.”When asked about the chance of repeated success this year, Hendricks said, “It’s definitely possible, but to ask them to do what they did last year is asking a lot."

Canadian Football League Legend going into College Football Hall Of Fame

Lincoln University great Leo Lewis has been selected to join the next class of inductees into the College Football Hall of Fame.Lewis, a running back for the Blue Tigers from 1951-54, holds the school records touchdowns in a season (22), touchdowns in a career (64), rushing yards in a season (1,239) and career rushing yards (4,457).In fact, Lewis holds the top three single-season rushing marks and his career total is more than double the second-place total.After graduating from Lincoln, Lewis went on to a storied career in the Canadian Football League. He played for the Winnipeg Blue Bombers from 1955-65, being named All-Pro six times and eventually earned a spot in the CFL Hall of Fame.Lewis is part of the Division Hall of Fame Class of 2005, which includes players and coaches from the NCAA Divisions I-AA, II and III, along with NAIA honorees. This is the 10th Divisional Class honored, as the Hall of Fame was expanded in 1996 to include players and coaches outside of NCAA Division I.To be eligible for the Hall of Fame, players must have received First-Team All-America status by a selector recognized by the NCAA, played their last year of intercollegiate football within the last 50 years, but no fewer than 10 years ago; and be retired from playing professionally. Coaches are eligible three years after retirement, provided they were a head coach for a minimum of 10 years and coached at least 100 games with a .600 winning percentage.Lewis and his fellow inductees will be honored at the College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, Ind., on Aug. 12-13.